Bearing containing and force applying device

ABSTRACT

A bearing containing and force applying device comprises a single piece member including an adjustable force applying spring clip having a chest portion for mounting over and against a bearing device. The chest portion has first and second edges; a first surface, and a second surface for contacting an outer or back end of the bearing member. The adjustable force applying spring clip also has bearing retaining members connected to the second surface of the chest portion for receiving and retaining the bearing member; and resilient shoulder portions connected the first and second edges and bent backwards towards the first or back surface of the chest portion. First and second hand portions are connected respectively to the first and second resilient shoulder portions, and are each bent forwardly from the first and second resilient shoulder portions towards the second surface of the chest portion for snapping into a first and a second receiving openings of plural receiving openings in a support wall portion of a machine. Each of the first and second hand portions includes a distal hook end for contacting and latching against a support wall portion after snapping into and through the receiving openings in such wall.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to bearing assemblies, and moreparticularly to a bearing containing and force applying device formounting a securable and removable bearing of a rotatable member to awall of a machine, such as a wall of an electrostatographic reproductionmachine.

Electrophotographic marking is a well-known, commonly used method ofcopying or printing documents. Electrophotographic marking is performedby exposing a charged photoreceptor with a light image representation ofa desired document. The photoreceptor is discharged in response to thatlight image, creating an electrostatic latent image of the desireddocument on the photoreceptor's surface. Toner particles are thendeposited onto that latent image, forming a toner image, which is thentransferred onto a substrate, such as a sheet of paper. The transferredtoner image is then fused to the substrate, usually using heat and/orpressure, thereby creating a permanent record of the originalrepresentation. The surface of the photoreceptor is then cleaned ofresidual developing material and recharged in preparation for theproduction of other images. Other marking technologies, for example,electrostatographic marking and ionography are also well-known.

An electrophotographic marking machine generally includes bearings forsupporting and connecting parts, for example, a shaft. While suchbearings are generally successful, fastening of the bearing to a membermay be time consuming and costly. Bearings may add to the cost of themachine. Further, the bearing may wear or fail and cause inefficientoperation of the machine. In addition, manufacturing time is required toinstall the bearings and to connect the components to the bearingsduring assembly of the machine.

Also, to conserve natural resources and provide for a machine withimproved features and more reliable newer technology, machinery is oftenremanufactured and disassembled. Furthermore, the removal of thebearings represents a cost associated with remanufacturing of themachines. The time required to remove bearings may be a significantremanufacturing cost factor. Components have typically been joinedtogether with the use of bearings in the form of welding, rivets orscrews. Rivets require the use of special machinery to assemble, maybecome loose and rattle during use and are difficult and expensive toremove for remanufacturing. Screws have disadvantages in that theyrequire a substantial amount of assembly time, may become loose duringuse, and may become very time consuming to remove. Therefore, a bearingthat may be easily manufactured and that is removeably securable to asurface for use with other parts would be beneficial.

Moreover, it has been increasingly important to develop lightermaterials for the framework of the machines. Accordingly, many modernmachines utilize a fabricated sheet metal or plastic frame resulting inrelatively thin walled support structures. Throughout a typical printingmachine, there are many shafts utilized to support idler rollers, driverollers. It is therefore desirable to provide a bearing which can beutilized in a wall while still providing generally high durability.

Reference is made for example to U.S. Pat. No. 6,024,497 (Liebman) whichrelates to a bushing mountable in a housing for supporting a rotatingmember and for providing a bias force to the rotating member. Thebushing includes a body defining an aperture therein and a mountingmember for mounting the bushing to the housing. The bushing alsoincludes a biasing member operably associated with said body and saidmounting member.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,511,885 (Coleman) relates to a plain flanged bearing orbushing for supporting a rotating shaft in a thin walled frame of anelectrophotographic printing machine. The composite bearing has aflanged end and is adapted to be inserted in an opening in a thin walledsupport member until the flange abuts the surface of the wall. Aprotruding tab formed by displacing a small portion of the flangeextends in an axial direction along the bearing and cooperates with acorresponding opening in the wall to prevent rotation of the bearing. Afriction push nut or snap ring is attached to the bearing on the side ofthe wall opposite the flange. The protruding tab prevents the bearingfrom rotating about an axis which can cause the bearing to be worn onthe exterior surface by rotational contact with the thin wall. A shaftto support idler rolls or other rotating elements is inserted in aninner bore of the bearing and is rotatably supported thereby.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a bearingcontaining and force applying device comprises a single piece memberincluding an adjustable force applying spring clip having a chestportion for mounting over and against a bearing device. The chestportion has first and second edges; a first surface, and a secondsurface for contacting an outer or back end of the bearing member. Theadjustable force applying spring clip also has bearing retaining membersconnected to the second surface of the chest portion for receiving andretaining the bearing member; and resilient shoulder portions connectedthe first and second edges and bent backwards towards the first or backsurface of the chest portion. First and second hand portions areconnected respectively to the first and second resilient shoulderportions, and are each bent forwardly from the first and secondresilient shoulder portions towards the second surface of the chestportion for snapping into a first and a second receiving openings ofplural receiving openings in a support wall portion of a machine. Eachof the first and second hand portions includes a distal hook end forcontacting and latching against a support wall portion after snappinginto and through the receiving openings in such wall.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the detailed description of the invention presented below, referenceis made to drawings in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a partial cut-away view of a portion of a machinesuch as an electrostatographic reproduction machine (FIG. 5) showing abearing containing and force applying device about to be assembled inaccordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 illustrates a side view of the adjustable force applying springclip showing the retaining means of the bearing assembly of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 illustrates a front view of the adjustable force applying springclip of the bearing assembly of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 illustrates the partial cut-away view of the portion of themachine of FIG. 1 showing the bearing containing and force applyingdevice fully assembled therein in accordance with the present invention;and

FIG. 5 is a schematic elevational view of an electrophotographicprinting machine utilizing the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

While the principles of the present invention will be described inconnection with an electrostatographic reproduction machine, it shouldbe understood that the present invention is not limited to thatembodiment or to that application. Therefore, it should be understoodthat the principles of the present invention extend to all alternatives,modifications and equivalents as may be included within the spirit andscope of the appended claims.

The present invention relates to embodiments of a bearing assembly foruse in walls of reproduction machines. Although the bearing assembly ofthe present invention is particularly well adapted for use in theillustrative printing machine, it will become evident that the bearingassembly is equally well suited for use in a wide variety of machinesand are not necessarily limited in its application to the particularembodiment shown herein.

Referring first to FIG. 5 of the drawings, an illustrative machine, forexample, an electrostatographic reproduction machine 9 incorporating thebearing containing and force applying device of the present invention isshown. The reproduction machine employs a photoconductive belt 10. Belt10 moves in the direction of arrow 12 to advance successive portionssequentially through the various processing stations disposed about thepath of movement thereof. Belt 10 is entrained about stripping roller14, tensioning roller 16, idler roll 18 and drive roller 20. As roller20 rotates, it advances belt 10 in the direction of arrow 12.

Initially, a portion of the photoconductive surface passes throughcharging station A. At charging station A, two corona generating devicesindicated generally by the reference numerals 22 and 24 charge thephotoconductive belt 10 to a relatively high, substantially uniformpotential.

Next, the charged portion of the photoconductive surface is advancedthrough imaging station B. At the imaging station, an imaging moduleindicated generally by the reference numeral 26, records anelectrostatic latent image on the photoconductive surface of the belt10. Imaging module 26 includes a raster output scanner (ROS). The ROSlays out the electrostatic latent image in a series of horizontal scanlines with each line having a specified number of pixels per inch. Othertypes of imaging systems may also be used employing, for example, apivoting or shiftable LED write bar or projection LCD (liquid crystaldisplay) or other electro-optic display as the “write” source.

The imaging module 26 (ROS) includes a laser 110 for generating acollimated beam of monochromatic radiation 122, an electronic subsystem(ESS) associated with the machine electronic printing controller 76transmits a set of signals via 114 corresponding to a series of pixelsto the laser 110 and/or modulator 112, a modulator and beam shapingoptics unit 112, which modulates the beam 122 in accordance with theimage information received from the ESS, and a rotatable polygon 118having mirror facets for sweep deflecting the beam 122 into raster scanlines which sequentially expose the surface of the belt 10 at imagingstation B. A user interface (UI) 150 is associated with the controller76.

Thereafter, belt 10 advances the electrostatic latent image recordedthereon to development station C. Development station C has threemagnetic brush developer rolls indicated generally by the referencenumerals 34, 36 and 38. A paddle wheel picks up developer material anddelivers it to the developer rolls. When the developer material reachesrolls 34 and 36, it is magnetically split between the rolls with half ofthe developer material being delivered to each roll. Photoconductivebelt 10 is partially wrapped about rolls 34 and 36 to form extendeddevelopment zones. Developer roll 38 is a clean-up roll. The latentimage attracts toner particles from the carrier granules of thedeveloper material to form a toner powder image on the photoconductivesurface of belt 10. Belt 10 then advances the toner powder image totransfer station D.

At transfer station D, a copy sheet is moved into contact with the tonerpowder image. First, photoconductive belt 10 is exposed to a pretransferlight from a lamp (not shown) to reduce the attraction betweenphotoconductive belt 10 and the toner powder image. Next, a corona,generating device 40 charges the copy sheet to the proper magnitude andpolarity so that the copy sheet is tacked to photoconductive belt 10 andthe toner powder image is attracted from the photoconductive belt to thecopy sheet. After transfer, corona generator 42 charges the copy sheetto the opposite polarity to detack the copy sheet from belt 10. Conveyor44 then advances the copy sheet to fusing station E.

Fusing station E includes a fuser assembly 46 which permanently affixesthe transferred toner powder image to the copy sheet. Preferably, fuserassembly 46 includes a heated fuser roller 48 and a pressure roller 50with the powder image on the copy sheet contacting fuser roller 48. Thepressure roller is cammed against the fuser roller to provide thenecessary pressure to fix the toner powder image to the copy sheet. Thefuser roll 48 is internally heated by a quartz lamp. Release agent,stored in a reservoir, is pumped to a metering roll. A trim blade trimsoff the excess release agent. The release agent transfers to a donorroll and then to the fuser roll.

After fusing, the copy sheets are fed through a decurler 52. Decurler 52bends the copy sheet in one direction to put a known curl in the copysheet and then bends it in the opposite direction to remove that curl.

Forwarding rollers 54 then advance the sheet to duplex turn roll 56.Duplex solenoid gate 58 guides the sheet to the finishing station F, orto duplex tray 60. At finishing station F, copy sheets are stacked in acompiler tray and attached to one another to form sets. When duplexsolenoid gate 58 diverts the sheet into duplex tray 60. Duplex tray 60provides an intermediate or buffer storage for those sheets that havebeen printed on one side and on which an image will be subsequentlyprinted on the second, opposite side thereof, i.e., the sheets beingduplexed. The sheets are stacked in duplex tray 60 facedown on top ofone another in the order in which they are copied.

To complete duplex copying, the simplex sheets in tray 60 are fed, inseriatim, by bottom feeder 62 from tray 60 back to transfer station Dvia conveyor 64 and rollers 66 for transfer of the toner powder image tothe opposed sides of the copy sheets. Inasmuch as successive bottomsheets are fed from duplex tray 60, the proper or clean side of the copysheet is positioned in contact with belt 10 at transfer station D sothat the toner powder image is transferred thereto. The duplex sheet isthen fed through the same path as the simplex sheet to be advanced tofinishing station F.

The high capacity variable sheet size sheet feeder 100 is the primarysource of copy sheets. Feed belt 81 feeds successive uppermost sheetsfrom the stack to a take-away drive roll 82 and idler rolls 84. Thedrive roll and idler rolls guide the sheet onto transport 86. Transport86 advances the sheet to rolls 66 which, in turn, move the sheet totransfer station D.

Secondary tray 68 and auxiliary tray 72 are secondary sources of copysheets. Copy sheets are fed to transfer station D from the secondarytray 68 or auxiliary tray 72. Sheet feeders 70, 74 are friction retardfeeders utilizing feed belts and take-away rolls to advance successivecopy sheets to transport 64 which advances the sheets to rolls 66 andthen to transfer station D. The copy sheet is registered just prior toentering transfer station D so that the sheet is aligned to receive thedeveloped image thereon.

Invariably, after the copy sheet is separated from the photoconductivebelt 10, some residual particles remain adhering thereto. Aftertransfer, photoconductive belt 10 passes beneath corona generatingdevice 94 which charges the residual toner particles to the properpolarity. Thereafter, the pre-charge erase lamp (not shown), locatedinside photoconductive belt 10, discharges the photoconductive belt inpreparation for the next charging cycle. Residual particles are removedfrom the photoconductive surface at cleaning station G. Cleaning stationG includes an electrically biased cleaner brush 88 and two de-toningrolls 90.

The various machine functions are regulated by a controller 76. Thecontroller 76 is preferably a programmable microprocessor which controlsall of the machine functions hereinbefore described. The controllerprovides a comparison count of the copy sheets, the number of documentsbeing recirculated, the number of copy sheets selected by the operator,time delays, jam corrections, etc. The control of all of the exemplarysystems heretofore described may be accomplished by conventional controlswitch inputs from the printing machine consoles selected by theoperator. Conventional sheet path sensors or switches may be utilized tokeep track of the position of the document and the copy sheets.

Throughout each of the operating stations of the machine as describedabove, bearings, and hence bearing assemblies as in accordance with thepresent invention, are in common use for supporting and connectingparts, for example rotatable shafts and members. In accordance with thepresent invention, to install each of such bearings, and to connect orfasten it the during assembly to a portion of a machine frame or wall ismade less time consuming and less costly. Ordinarily, the design ofbearing assemblies requires that the outer and inner race of the bearingdevice therein be secured. This is typically accomplished either throughthe use of a retaining ring or the use of press fits. A retaining ringrequires additional hardware, and a press fit normally means or resultsin an inseparable assembly which is not good for assemblies intended forremanufacture.

Turning now to FIGS. 1-4, a partial cut-away view of a rotatablecomponent portion 120 of a machine, for example an electrostatographicreproduction machine 9, including a bearing containing and forceapplying device 150 about to be fully assembled in accordance with thepresent invention is illustrated in FIG. 1. The bearing containing andforce applying device 150 is suitable for containing a bearing device ormember 154 and supporting a rotatable shaft 122 in a wall 156 of amachine 9. The bearing member 154 has a central bore (not shown) afirst, back or outer end and a forward or front end as mounted withinthe wall portion 158.

As shown, the bearing containing and force applying device 150 is usedagainst a support wall portion 158 of the wall 156 of the machine. Thesupport wall portion 158 has a first surface 160, a wall thickness 157,a second and opposite surface 162, a central opening 164 therethrough, abearing receiving recess 166 formed from the first surface 160 partiallyinto the wall thickness 157; and plural receiving openings includingfirst and second receiving openings 168, 169 formed through the wallthickness 157 and spaced from the central opening 164.

The bearing containing and force applying device 150 comprises a singlepiece member including an adjustable force applying spring clip 172having a chest portion 174 for mounting over and against the bearingdevice or member 154. The chest portion 174 has first and second edges182, 184, a first surface 180, and a second surface 181 for contactingthe outer or back end of the bearing member or device 154. Theadjustable force applying spring clip 172 also has retaining means 140connected to the second surface 181 of the chest portion for receivingand containing the bearing member 154.

The adjustable force applying spring clip 172 as shown (FIGS. 1-4), alsoincludes resilient shoulder portions 176, 178 that are bent backwardstowards the first or back surface 180 of the chest portion 174 and awayfrom the first surface 160 of the wall portion 158. As shown, each ofthe shoulder portions 176, 178 is connected to one of the first andsecond edges 182, 184 of the chest portion 174. Each of the shoulderportion includes a curved shoulder-to-chest connecting portion having anadjustable radius of curvature, given the spring characteristics of thespring clip 172.

First and second hand portions 186, 188 are then connected respectivelyto the first and second resilient shoulder portions 176, 178. The firstand second hand portions 186, 188 are each bent forwardly from the firstand second resilient shoulder portions 176, 178 towards the surface 160of the wall portion 158 for snapping into the first and the secondreceiving openings 168, 169 in the wall portion 158. Each of the firstand second resilient shoulder portions 176, 178 includes a curvedshoulder-to-hand connecting portion similarly also having an adjustableradius of curvature. As further shown, each of the first and second handportions 186, 188 includes a distal hook end 190, 192 for contacting andlatching against the support wall portion 158 after snapping into andthrough the receiving openings 168, 169.

The retaining means 140 as shown comprise plural spring members 142,144, 146 each projecting from the second surface 181 of the chestportion 174 to a distal end 147, 148, 149 that are each curved slightlyand backwardly towards the first surface 181 of the chest portion 174.The plural spring members 140 thus include at least a first, a secondand a third flat spring members 142, 144, 146 that as shown are spacedcircumferencially around a common center defining a channel 145 forfrictionally receiving and containing the bearing member 154.

As shown, the rotatable component portion 120 of the machine 9 includesthe wall or frame 152 and the rotatable shaft 122 that is about to beinstalled into the wall or frame 152, and the bearing device 154. Asfurther shown, the bearing member 154 is inserted in a force fit mannerwithin the channel formed by the plural spring members 142, 144, 146 andthe bearing containing and force applying device 150 is inserted intothe wall or frame 152 until a front surface 181 of the bearing device154 contacts a bottom surface of the receiving recess 166.

The adjustable force applying spring clip 172 is used to hold thebearing device 154 of the bearing containing and force applying device150 substantially secured within the receiving recess 166 while applyingthe normal force F1 against the back surface 180 of the bearing device154. As such, the adjustable force applying spring clip 172 physicallyimpedes the bearing member 154 and the bearing containing and forceapplying device 150 as a whole, from rotating about its axis and frombecoming unsecured from the wall or frame 152.

The shoulder portions 176, 178 and the hand portions 186, 188 areflexible and are thus stretchable (by changing the angle of theirbackward or forward curvature or bend) from an unextended free state toan extended state so as to allow the distal ends 190, 192 of the handportions 186, 188 to snap fit through first and second receivingopenings 168, 169 (from the first surface 160 to the second surface 162)in an extended or tensioned force applying state. In the unextendedstate, the distal hook ends 190, 192 are spaced from each other adistance less than a spacing between the first and the second receivingopenings 168, 169 in the wall portion.

So to recap, the present invention is directed to a bearing containingand force applying device 150 for containing a bearing member 154 andsupporting a rotatable shaft 122 in a wall 156 of a machine 9. Thebearing containing and force applying device 150 is used against asupport wall portion 158 of the wall 156 of the machine. The supportwall portion 158 has a first surface 160, a wall thickness 157, a secondand opposite surface 162, a central opening 164 therethrough, a bearingreceiving recess 166 formed from the first surface 160 partially intothe wall thickness 157; and plural receiving openings including firstand second receiving openings 168, 169 formed through the wall thickness157 and spaced from the central opening 164.

The bearing containing and force applying device with its bearingretaining members forms a bearing assembly with the bearing member 154for inserting into the bearing receiving recess 166. The bearing deviceor member 154 has a cylindrical external surface, an inner bore (notshown) for fitting over the shaft 122, and the external surface thatfits frictionally within the channel 145. The bearing containing andforce applying device also includes the adjustable force applying springclip 172 for snapping into the receiving openings and applying a desirednormal force F1 to the bearing device or member 154.

The chest portion 174 includes a retaining aperture 196 therethrough forfitting over the bearing device 154. As bent forwardly from the firstand second resilient shoulder portions 176, 178, each of the first andsecond hand portions 186, 188 is spaced forwardly from the chest portion174, a distance D1 that is less than the thickness 157 of the wall orframe 152, so as to cause the shoulder portions 176, 178 and the handportions 186, 188 to be extended to allow the distal ends 190, 192 ofthe hand portions 186, 188 to snap fit through the first and secondreceiving openings 168, 169 as above.

As can be seen, there has been provided a bearing containing and forceapplying device comprises a single piece member including an adjustableforce applying spring clip having a chest portion for mounting over andagainst a bearing device. The chest portion has first and second edges;a first surface, and a second surface for contacting an outer or backend of the bearing member. The adjustable force applying spring clipalso has bearing retaining members connected to the second surface ofthe chest portion for receiving and retaining the bearing member; andresilient shoulder portions connected the first and second edges andbent backwards towards the first or back surface of the chest portion.First and second hand portions are connected respectively to the firstand second resilient shoulder portions, and are each bent forwardly fromthe first and second resilient shoulder portions towards the secondsurface of the chest portion for snapping into a first and a secondreceiving openings of plural receiving openings in a support wallportion of a machine. Each of the first and second hand portionsincludes a distal hook end for contacting and latching against a supportwall portion after snapping into and through the receiving openings insuch wall.

While this invention has been described in conjunction with a specificembodiment thereof, it is evident that many alternatives, modifications,and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art.Accordingly, it is intended to embrace all such alternatives,modifications and variations that fall within the spirit and broad scopeof the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A bearing containing and force applying devicefor containing and retaining a bearing member in a bearing support wallportion of a machine wall, the bearing containing and force applyingdevice comprising a single piece member including: a. a chest portionhaving first and second edges, a first surface, and a second surface forcontacting a bearing member; b. retaining means connected to said secondsurface of said chest portion for receiving and retaining a bearingmember; c. first and second resilient shoulder portions connected one toeach of said first and second edges respectively. ii. each said firstand second shoulder portions being bent towards said first surface ofsaid chest portion; and iii. a first hand portion and a second handportion connected one to each of said first and second resilientshoulder portions respectively, each said first hand portion and saidsecond hand portion being bent toward said second surface from saidfirst and second resilient shoulder portions respectively for snappinginto a first receiving opening and a second receiving opening of pluralreceiving openings through a wall thickness of a bearing support wallportion of a machine wall.
 2. The bearing containing and force applyingdevice of claim 1, wherein said retaining means comprises plural springmembers each projecting from said second surface to a distal end.
 3. Thebearing containing and force applying device of claim 2, wherein saidplural spring members include at least a first, a second and a thirdspring members.
 4. The bearing containing and force applying device ofclaim 2, wherein said plural spring members include at least a first, asecond and a third spring members spaced circumferencially around acommon center.
 5. The bearing containing and force applying device ofclaim 2, wherein each said plural spring members comprises a flatspring.
 6. The bearing containing and force applying device of claim 2,wherein said distal end of each said plural spring members is curvedbackwardly towards said first surface.
 7. The bearing containing andforce applying device of claim 1, including a bearing member formounting into the bearing support wall portion.
 8. The bearingcontaining and force applying device of claim 1, wherein said chestportion includes a retaining aperture therethrough for fitting over saidbearing device.
 9. The bearing containing and force applying device ofclaim 1, wherein each said shoulder portion includes a curvedshoulder-to-chest connecting portion having an adjustable radius ofcurvature.
 10. The bearing containing and force applying device of claim1, wherein each said first and second resilient shoulder portionsincludes a curved shoulder-to-hand connecting portion having anadjustable radius of curvature.
 11. The bearing containing and forceapplying device of claim 1, wherein each said first and second handportions includes a distal hook end for contacting and latching againstsaid support wall portion.
 12. A bearing assembly for supporting arotatable shaft in a wall of a machine comprising: a. a support wallportion of the wall of the machine, said support wall portion having afirst surface, a wall thickness and a second and opposite surface; b. acentral opening through said support wall portion; c. a bearingreceiving recess formed from said first surface partially into said wallthickness of said support wall portion; d. plural receiving openingsformed through said wall thickness of said support wall portion andspaced from said central opening; and e. an adjustable force applyingspring clip for applying a desired normal force to a bearing member insaid receiving recess, said adjustable force applying spring clipincluding: i. a chest portion for contacting said bearing device, saidchest portion having first and second edges, and a first surface, and asecond surface for contacting a bearing member; ii retaining meansconnected to said second surface of said chest portion and defining achannel for receiving and retaining a bearing member; iii a bearingmember for inserting into said channel defined by said retaining means,said bearing member having an inner bore and an external surfacefrictionally contacting said retaining members; iv. resilient shoulderportions connected one to each of said first and second edgesrespectively, each said first and second shoulder portions being benttowards said first surface of said chest portion; and v. first andsecond hand portions connected one to each of said first and secondresilient shoulder portions, each said first and second hand portionsbeing bent toward said second surface of said chest portion from saidfirst and second resilient shoulder portions respectively for snappinginto a first and a second receiving openings of said plural receivingopenings through said wall thickness of said support wall portion. 13.The bearing assembly of claim 12, including a retaining ring for fittingover said bearing device between said first surface of said support wallportion and said chest portion of said adjustable force applying springclip.
 14. The bearing assembly of claim 12, wherein said bearing devicehas a cylindrical external surface.
 15. The bearing assembly of claim12, wherein said chest portion includes a retaining aperturetherethrough for fitting over said bearing device.
 16. The bearingassembly of claim 12, wherein each said shoulder portion includes acurved shoulder-to-chest connecting portion having an adjustable radiusof curvature.
 17. The bearing assembly of claim 12, wherein each saidfirst and second resilient shoulder portions includes a curvedshoulder-to-hand connecting portion having an adjustable radius ofcurvature.
 18. The bearing assembly of claim 12, wherein each said firstand second hand portions includes a distal hook end for contacting andlatching against said support wall portion.
 19. A bearing assembly forsupporting a rotatable shaft in a support wall portion of a wall of amachine, where the support wall portion has a first surface, a wallthickness and a second and opposite surface, a central opening throughthe support wall portion, a bearing receiving recess formed from thefirst surface partially into the wall thickness of the support wallportion, and plural receiving openings including a first and a secondreceiving opening formed through the wall thickness of the support wallportion and spaced from the central opening, the bearing assemblycomprising: a. a bearing member, said bearing member having an innerbore and an external surface; and b. a bearing containing and forceapplying device for containing and retaining said bearing member forinsertion into the bearing receiving recess, the bearing containing andforce applying device comprising a single piece member including anadjustable force applying spring clip for applying a desired normalforce to the bearing member within the receiving recess, said adjustableforce applying spring clip including: i. a chest portion for contactingsaid bearing member, said chest portion having first and second edges,and a first surface, and a second surface for contacting the bearingmember; ii retaining means connected to said second surface of saidchest portion and defining a channel for receiving and containing saidbearing member; iii. resilient shoulder portions connected one to eachof said first and second edges respectively, each said first and secondshoulder portions being bent towards said first surface of said chestportion; and iv. first and second hand portions connected one to each ofsaid first and second resilient shoulder portions, each said first andsecond hand portions being bent toward said second surface of said chestportion from said first and second resilient shoulder portionsrespectively for snapping into the first and a second receiving openingsof the plural receiving openings through the wall thickness of thesupport wall portion.
 20. An electrostatographic reproduction machinecomprising: a. subsystems including a movable image bearing member,imaging devices, and at least a development apparatus, for forming andtransferring a toner image onto a copy sheet; b. rotatable componentswithin said subsystems for mounting and supporting rotatably in abearing assembly; and c. a bearing assembly for supporting each saidrotatable component in a support wall portion of said machine, saidbearing assembly including: i. a bearing member, said bearing memberhaving an inner bore and an external surface; and ii. a bearingcontaining and force applying device for containing and retaining saidbearing member for insertion into the bearing receiving recess, thebearing containing and force applying device comprising a single piecemember including an adjustable force applying spring clip for applying adesired normal force to the bearing member within the receiving recess,said adjustable force applying spring clip having: a chest portion forcontacting said bearing member, said chest portion having first andsecond edges, and a first surface, and a second surface for contactingthe bearing member; retaining means connected to said second surface ofsaid chest portion and defining a channel for receiving and containingsaid bearing member; resilient shoulder portions connected one to eachof said first and second edges respectively, each said first and secondshoulder portions being bent towards said first surface of said chestportion; and first and second hand portions connected one to each ofsaid first and second resilient shoulder portions, each said first andsecond hand portions being bent toward said second surface of said chestportion from said first and second resilient shoulder portionsrespectively for snapping into the first and a second receiving openingsof the plural receiving openings through the wall thickness of thesupport wall portion.